Attracted To the Dark
by Poetic Mystery
Summary: Ryou is a novelist who falls in love with a charming psychopath, named Marik, who wants to sponsor him on his novel. Little does he know that he's fallen hard for a serial killer. How far does love go when treading in dark waters? Will they swim or drown?
1. The Critic

Whoo! I'm really getting into writing this one. I'll be working on this and "Selfish Love" side by side. But I had this stuck in my head and had to let it out before I forgot about it. My chapters are so incredibly short. xD It makes me sad. So hopefully these get longer as I go along. Rated T for now, M for later. You'll catch on. =D

Deathshipping: Ryou/Marik

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh, nor will I ever.

**Attracted To the Dark**

Ryou leaned over his desk again, checking himself out in the mirror. Smudging a small bit of eyeliner around his eyes to help them pop out, he rubbed his finger along the edges, wiping off the extra makeup. Tonight was the night of his book signing, and he had to look his best. He wanted to appear elegant but mysterious to give off that edge that he always pulled off in his writing. He grabbed a red ribbon and tied his hair back with it, tucking the white locks behind his ears. Standing up straight, he took one last glance at his attire for the night: a long-sleeved silken black button up shirt with red cuffs and a white undershirt along with his white jeans. The undershirt was more for security if he got warm and wanted to unbutton his shirt without looking like an easy target. He knew that he had a rather soft look to him and didn't want that to influence his readers. He picked up his book and started his way out the door, grabbing his keys along the way before locking up.

Once he arrived at the seen, there was already a line of people waiting outside, he chuckled to himself and went around the back entrance, knowing full well not many people were aware that it even existed, allowing him to make an easy appearance. He found his table and set down the items that he brought with, a personal copy of his book, along with another few stacks behind him that the store placed out for purchase, a stack of self portraits, and a glass full of pens. "Perfect, I'll do this small book signing tonight, and then next week I've got my appointment with that TV station who wanted to do an interview with me. Never thought that I'd get this far in my career!" he cheered quietly to himself. At least he had the profession of a writer, people generally expected them to be at least a little eccentric.

The lights went from dim to bright as the doors opened, letting the crowd of people inside. The group was mostly women, of course, who ran up to the table as quickly as they could. He had a feeling that a few of them hadn't even read any of his works. But it did still boost his ego a bit when a nice crowd came in solely to see him. "Why hello there miss, which would you like?" he asked with a pleasant smile on his face, his voice soft and melodic. She took one of the pictures and a copy of the new book, asking him to sign the portrait. "And who will I be signing this out to?"

"Me! My name is Anzu. I'm such a big fan!" she cheered loudly, annoying him slightly, but he didn't let it show. After all, he had to remain professional. He couldn't pick and choose who read his books.

"Ah, a lovely name for such a beautiful lady," he said smoothly, hating every word of it.

He wondered if they realized that he wasn't even into women. Then again, maybe they were just hoping that he was a sensitive straight man who loved writing gothic romance novels. Most of the line went the same, woman after woman, with the occasional male in between. A few of them were lookers; a few of them weren't so blessed. The next in line startled him slightly however. Amethyst eyes narrowed at him, taking in his appearance. He couldn't tell what the other was thinking behind those eyes. Such an unusual color, but they complimented his dark skin well. The hair did throw him off a bit though. It was wild, sticking out in every direction with a pretty blond shade. He was dressed in a black, sleeveless shirt that tucked into his dark belt that wound around his black jeans. All the dark colors, or lack there of, gave him an alluring presence." Why hello there, Mr. Bakura. You're writing has captivated my attention almost as much as you have," the man's voice was deep and seductive, reminding him much of the way he had described the object of the leading character's interest. "Marik."

"Hmm?" Ryou replied, snapping out of his fantasy world and back into reality. He hadn't noticed he had been staring. He heard a dark chuckle in response and it ran chills up his spine.

"Please make it out to, _Marik_," the stranger repeated. An exotic name too. It didn't surprise him too much; after all he obviously wasn't Japanese. Then again, he was only half Japanese himself. A faint blush crossed his features and he took out a new pen, signing his name to Marik, followed by a little heart that did not go unnoticed by the other. When he went to take the signed copy of his picture, tan fingers brushed against pale ones, and Ryou swore he felt an electrical current spark against the contact.

He felt dazed when he walked away, wishing that he would have asked for some method of contact for him. Then again, if he was a fan of his work, he was sure that he'd see him around again. Maybe he even lived in town. Domino City wasn't too big of a place, even if it did hold a lot of important enterprises within it. He only hoped that this wasn't the last time that he would see that exotic man. The rest of the signing went on as a monotonous task, as he forced himself to remain friendly and keep his mind on the task at hand.

Once he arrived home, however, he unlocked his house and wondered inside, dragging himself upstairs only to flop down ungraciously on his bed. He had started at 8 p.m. and now it was near midnight. His hand was sore from all the writing he had to do, seeing how he wrote his stories on his laptop. Letting out a sigh, he let his mind wander back to that strange man. Why was he so enthralled by those eyes? Something about him made him want to learn more, maybe ask him out for drinks. "Gods…I hope he's single. At the very least let him be gay!" he groaned to himself, already feeling attached to those devilish good looks. What gave him the right to waltz in there looking like that when he had a job to do? Now it was all he could think about. _Maybe a cold shower could clear my thoughts..._

The next morning, Ryou woke up and went straight to the bathroom to brush his teeth and hair. That shower had done wonders to help calm his body down, but he knew that it was only a temporary fix. There was a party going on that day and he had been wondering whether or not he should even show up. But now, he wanted nothing more than to go if only to get his mind off of other things. At least this new experience gave him material for his next novel. He was really looking forward to writing about it. Maybe he'd even notice that it was about him by the time he got it published. For now, he went to his closet to search for an outfit. He didn't bother with lunch, since he had slept in to one in the afternoon. The party started in an hour. It was a get together for all the business associates and other folk who could afford to get their way in. He was in no way short on funding, especially since his books were selling like hotcakes.

Picking out a white short sleeved button up polo along with a black overcoat that he would leave un-tucked over his black slacks, he changed into them at his own pace, which was still rather slow due to grogginess. He brushed his hair out once more to make sure that it looked soft and under control since he planned on wearing it down today. He grabbed his watch and snapped it onto his wrist carefully, double checking the time to make sure it was correct with his cell phone before slipping that into his pocket. Once he was satisfied with his overall appearance, he locked up and hopped into his car once more. "It'll be nice to get out of the house anyway. It's not like have anything to do around there at the moment besides more writing," he sighed to himself, wishing for a better social life than he had. It was hard to find friends who weren't superficial in this town, and when you had money, it made the search even harder to find. He arrived at the mansion that it was being held at and rang the door. Of course Kaiba would have it at his house; he was always looking to impress the masses. He had a large disposable income, and liked to flaunt that in the faces of whoever dared turn to take a look. But the house was gorgeous; he had to give him that. And after only a few moments of waiting, somebody finally answered the door. He wondered how much he paid his door keepers; he had somebody for each tedious job that he could think of. Did he ever do anything for himself other than work?

Ryou smiled and walked in, thanking the man at the door before leaving his overcoat on a hook along with the others. Green eyes locked onto him as soon as he entered the room, as the man who they belonged to ran up to embrace him. "Ryou! Good to see you, it's been ages. How's the writing treating you? Looks like you've got a nice fan base going for yourself," he chuckled.

"It's nice to see you too Otogi," he beamed. Otogi was one of his _real _friends, somebody who he could rely on. He also knew everything about everybody important in town, but when it came to his friends he didn't release any information they wouldn't want him to. "It's been nice. I had a signing last night that took about 4 hours." A whistle was heard in return and he received a pat on the back.

"Not bad, not bad. Some of those authors get to spend a lot more time than that, without breaks! Don't forget, I got you that spot on TV for Friday. Had to pull a few strings to get it though," he admitted, picking up a glass of wine that had been carried by them on a tray and taking a sip. Ryou nodded and smiled broadly.

"And I'm very grateful. I'll make it up to you sometime, I promise." This earned a wide grin in response as he finished off his glass of wine. It's a good thing it was only a third of the way full in the first place. Then again, Seto was the one who would have to deal with his fiancé later on. It wasn't much of a mystery how those two got together; as a matter of fact it had been the talk of the town. Otogi had been Seto's "mistress" for quite some time before the relationship was made public. But nothing could be kept a secret for long, especially not when the paparazzi had found them in a lip lock when the limousine door was opened at the premier of Seto's newest invention on the market.

"So, have you heard about the new book critic in town yet? They say he's a real hard ass; but your work is pretty good, maybe he'll sponsor you. They say he just flew in his home in Egypt." Otogi whispered loudly enough for only Ryou to hear, but not for anyone else's ears. He shook his head and let his brows furrow together.

"All the way from Egypt? What's his name?" he queried, perhaps he could persuade him to read one of his books.

"His name is Marik Ishtar…I believe he just flew in last week," the dark haired male answered confidently, knowing his stuff. "Seto invited him here today as a welcome into the city. He's totally loaded, enough to make my blue-eyed angel sweat a little," he chuckled, amused that there was someone out there who made that icy corporate man of his nervous.

Ryou's eyes widened at that bit of information and he swallowed, how on earth could he have such luck? It had only been last night that he first met him. Looking around the room for that mess of spiky blond hair from the other night, he spotted him from across the room. Apparently he had already been spotted himself, for he was making his way over. Once he noticed he had the attention of the one he approached, he gave a small wave to Ryou and a sly grin broke out upon his face. "Ah, so we meet again," he purred, standing a bit closer than Ryou was comfortable having this man to him, maybe it was because it felt ten degrees hotter now that he was face to face with those mysterious eyes once more. "Hello, Marik was it?" he chuckled nervously, placing out a hand to shake out of politeness.

"So the two of you have already met, huh? I'm going to leave you two to do your thing while I go check on Seto," he gave Ryou's shoulder a squeeze as he took off in the opposite direction, hunting down his lover in such a crowded place. Though it wouldn't be too hard, his ego is large enough that he could probably be seen from space. But that was just his opinion of the man.

The taller male blinked slightly as the other left, wondering if it was something that he said to scare him off. Perhaps it was a signal that Ryou wanted to be alone with him as well. Either way he was fine with the outcome. "Yes. And of course you're Bakura, Ryou," he stated bluntly, but smoothly. Why did everything about this man draw him like a moth to a flame? He knew that such a quick attachment could prove dangerous to him, but at least he was given the time to get to know him now instead of being drawn to a _complete_ stranger. "I read the book you released last night. It was lovely…did you write it from a personal experience?" he questioned, causing Ryou's face to darken. It had been one of his steamier books, giving out a vivid description of his imagined sex scene. He shook his head mildly and averted his gaze. "No, I write purely on fantasy." _Why do I get the feeling that came off sounding bad?_

However the man didn't laugh at him, he merely looked amused as his eyebrows raised. His gaze looked awfully calculating. What was going on behind that piercing gaze? No sooner did he have time to question it, he had gained a more pleasant look on his face, leaning in. "What do you say take this conversation outside where we can speak privately? No need for everyone to get wind of my proposal for you just yet," he explained, placing a hand on Ryou's back and guiding him outside with little to no argument from the other. "I've been thinking," he continued, "Since I got a hold of your work, I wanted to get to know the mastermind behind the script. Especially the darker themed ones. I like the way your mind works…" Ryou nodded, staying silent while he continued to speak. "I want you to write under my company's name, we'll take care of the publishing costs. Of course you'd have to agree for me to be your editor."

The whitnette thought he could faint right then and there. Taking in a deep breath, he filled his lungs deep with oxygen before answering, "Of course, I could use a new sponsor, the contract with my last one expired with this book," he chuckled, brushing a hand through his hair.

"So you can start right away then?" came the voice full of some sort of mirth.

"Yes, of course. This Monday if you like…" he answered, looking back up into his eyes. _He's so tall,_ his mind wandered, feeling his heartbeat quicken. _Business. This is strictly business. Don't even think about hitting on him, it'll probably ruin your chances at keeping this opportunity. _

"Great, I'll be seeing you around." Ryou could have sworn he saw him wink, but then again, it could have just been wishful thinking. After all, his mind was rather clouded with thoughts that plagued his conscience as he stood, waving after the man who had just walked back inside.

_Well, so much for clearing my head of ever seeing him again._


	2. Fairy Tales

Alrighty. I do believe an apology is due. It's been a long time since I updated this story, and I am truly sorry for that. I had a lot of stuff come up in my personal life, but now that things are stable again, I figured I'd start writing again. Simple as that.

Warnings: Rated M now for a reason. This chapter contains the description of Marik's first murder in Domino City.

Disclaimer: I do not own YuGiOh or its' characters.

Muffled cries flooded the room. A girl sat against the grimy wall, feeling the concrete biting into her skin. Her back dug into her hands tied behind her back with barbed wire. It hurt to move them, and she was afraid to let the wire cut into them any more than they already had. The old rag tied around her mouth felt slimy with her saliva and her nose ran from her tears. It tasted slightly of gasoline. She tried to call out, but the sound wouldn't carry very far. To have woken up to this was a true nightmare, but what was to become of her made her stomach drop and her body feel numb with dread.

"_Rain, rain go away"_ footsteps echoed in the empty building. Or so she assumed. The cloth around her eyes was so dark that she couldn't see through it. Her eyebrows furrowed and she was sprayed with something. A scream was attached to the spray, and it smelled like copper. Realization struck her harder than a physical blow to the face. It was blood. She started to scream, backing into the wall further, feeling the wire cut into her wrists.

"_Come again another day_," sickening hacking sounds could be heard. It was as though a body was being cut to pieces, wet, sharp sounds penetrating the room. That voice was mocking her. He sang so gently, putting little effort into his voice. That sick perverted freak was getting his thrill off of this and she could tell. And now she was left to regret all the things that she wished she hadn't done. This morning she yelled at her mother and left without saying 'I love you' because she was in a bad mood. Her grades weren't anything to remember because she would rather spend time with her friends than spend it on homework. And she was going to be forgotten as a selfish girl who cared only for herself.

"_Little Johnny wants to play_," he chuckled, and she heard the sound of something hard hitting the floor with a crack. If she could see right now, she would have seen the skull splitting open on the concrete floor. She felt bile rise in her throat at his words. Panic was filling her veins with useless adrenaline. The only thing it was doing was making her sick as she began to hyperventilate.

"_Rain, rain go to Spain_," the voice was getting closer, and the footsteps echoed in her ears. The sound was so loud that it hurt the inside of her head. Her senses were on hyper-drive and she choked on her breath, shrinking against the wall. She shook her head from side to side deliriously, just wanting everything to stop. She wanted to wake up in her bed and pretend this was all just a bad dream.

"_Never show your face again!_" he cheered, kneeling in front of her. She felt wet hands touch her face, and she realized that they were concealed with gloves. They untied the black ribbon from her face and she was met with strange, purple eyes. His hair was concealed under a black mask, and the rest of his body was protected with some sort of suit. "Little Johnny didn't want to play for very long. He's being so rude, ignoring me…" he chuckled again, and her line of vision trailed over to the decapitated head on the floor. She screamed again, fresh tears spilling from her eyes.

"Shh, quiet…" he cooed, stroking her cheek gently, the blood of his last victim over his gloved hand. "Don't cry, don't cry. You're messing up your pretty makeup," he spoke kind words, but left the gag in, not letting her say her own. She was begging him to leave her alone. She wouldn't tell anyone, just let her go home. But he stood up and walked over to a table. The floor was splattered with red, and she knew it was coating her. He must've done it right by her. Her eyes widened when she saw him pick up a rather large knife, and she nearly fainted.

"Little Johnny fell asleep so quickly. Do you think you can stay awake?" he asked sweetly, walking over to her. He grinned and pressed the blade to her neck. "It's alright if you need to take a nap, I understand that you've played hard today…" he was mocking her. It was driving her insane. Almost as if he had picked up on her thoughts, he grinned again, through the mask. "Insanity is a funny thing…the truly insane don't know they're crazy…they think everyone else is…" the blade caressed her cheek, allowing a bubble of red to slowly come to the surface. "As for me…I know full well what I'm doing here," his voice was dark and sensual, and he grabbed her chin, forcing her to look into his eyes. "You see, I'm just like a nursery rhyme. I appear normal, and make people happy…but my origin and true meaning is considerably darker. Most people just don't take the time to do research." Again, he was laughing to himself.

The sound made her crazy; she wanted to make it stop. She grunted into her gag and kicked him as hard as she could. The laughter stopped altogether then, and he stared at her with an icy gaze that made her blood run cold. "You don't play very nice, do you?" he said, his voice flat of emotion. Those eyes were calculating her, narrowed in a thoughtful manner. "What makes you tick?" he asked, standing up before her.

He stood there for a moment, lost in thought before he began to walk casually in front of her. He bent down and picked up the head of her classmate. "_There was a little girl_," he began. He was starting another story. This time, it was obviously hers. He swallowed thick, her throat suddenly dry despite the saliva built in her throat.

He slicked his finger with the blood and set it down again, kneeling before her. She dared not move this time, not when he was so calm like this. His fingers reached out to her hair, and twisted a small lock with the wet fingers. "_Who had a little curl…_" he grinned, releasing her hair. He stood again, confusing her.

He didn't make sense to her, but her eyes were glued to him carefully, not wanting to let him out of her sight. It wasn't like she could do anything about it, but it was still comforting that there would be no surprises. She saw him pick up a rusty looking nail, the knife still in his hand. And once more, he was in front of her. "_Right in the middle of her forehead.._." He placed the nail through the little curl, and with the hilt of the knife, thrust the nail into her skin. She screeched beneath him, thrashing her head to the side. He had hit it hard enough that it stayed in place, but it wasn't enough. He grabbed her chin once more, keeping her in place while he pounded the nail into her skull.

She was sobbing now; the feeling of the blood running down her face was twisting her stomach into knots. The pain was unbearable, and she thought it should have killed her. But she was still there, and what's worse, she hadn't passed out from the shock.

"_And when she was good…_" he started again, stroking the rest of her hair. He smiled sweetly as though none of this was happening. He didn't have a psychotic grin that she was expecting; he wasn't cackling manically and spouting off nonsensical things. He was acting like they were having a picnic in the park on a date, and not killing her slowly.

"_She was very, very good_…" at this point in time, she wished she had known more about nursery rhymes. She didn't know how this one ended; she didn't want to know how it ended. He moved the mask a little to reveal his mouth more. He pressed his lips against her cheek gently, pulling his mask back down. He could taste her blood on his mouth. Her eyes were wide, and she stared at his blurry form.

"_But when she was bad…_" the abrupt change made her cringe. He slapped her across the face, relishing in the loud sound that echoed off the halls. Why was this happening to her? Weren't murders and kidnappers supposed to do these things at night, or in the middle of nowhere? She knew where they were. The building may have been empty, but there were still businesses around it. Hadn't they noticed them coming into the building? Hadn't they seen their kidnapper dragging them into this dingy place? She couldn't remember how he had gotten them in the place that was soon to be her tomb. Her head hurt and her mind was starting to get fuzzy.

"_She was horrid," _he finished the rhyme. She could tell it how his voice cut off in a deadly tone. He struck the knife into her neck, and then everything went black. She couldn't feel a thing as her whole body went into shock. When she collapsed forward, her murderer stepped out of the way. Humming to himself, he wrote one nursery rhyme on the wall, behind the girl. The other one he wrote on the floor, next to the fallen head and the bloody spray that tied into the story. When he was finished, we walked over and picked up the girl's bag, rummaging through it until he found her cell phone. He snorted, glancing at the cute little charms that dangled from it. She wouldn't be needing it anymore. He dialed the police station and waited for them to pick up. "Hello? Yes, I have an emergency situation…" he feigned panic in his voice, though his face was as stoic as usual. "I'm at the old Haven Restaurant…I heard some screaming come from inside and so I peered in the windows. I think somebody was killed in there," he ended with a choked sob and shut off the phone, tossing it onto the dead girl's body carelessly.

Before he left, he poured bleach over their bodies and went outside, climbed into his rental car, then drove away.

Sirens were the first thing that Ryou heard as he stirred from his sleep. He rolled over and looked at his alarm clock. It was noon. He sighed and swung his feet over the side of his bed, yawning loudly. "I really need to start getting up early. I feel so lazy," he laughed to himself, dragging his body out of bed and into the shower.

The water was warm on his skin and he hummed to himself, washing out his hair. He never really used any products, they would ruin his hair. Though it was a bit abnormal to have hair as white as his at such a young age. It ran in his family though. His stories did reflect his life a little in that aspect. He didn't like to talk about families.

When he was done washing his body, he dried off and wrapped a towel around his body. Walking out into the kitchen, he passed by the living room and turned the TV onto the news before heading to the fridge. As he poured a glass of orange juice, he saw a news reporter reporting live from an abandoned building on the outskirts of Domino City. He raised an eyebrow and leaned against the doorframe, trying to catch what he had missed.

"We're here at the old Haven Restaurant where two murders have just been reported. The state of the bodies has been asked not to be released by the public, and police are trying to identify the bodies. What we can say is that they were students from Domino high given their school uniforms and messenger bags. The only clue that has been left behind is a nursery rhyme written on the wall behind the female victim, and another on the floor. If you have any clues relating to this story, please contact…"

Ryou tuned out, letting the information sink in. He felt bad for the two victims, he really did. It was a shame that two people so young would fall to a fate like that. He sighed and sat on the couch, staring at the wall. Nursery rhymes? He wondered which ones were written. It was definitely interesting to leave a clue like that. He could only imagine what it would be like to have a murderer spouting off a children's nursery rhyme to you while hacking off your limbs. He shuddered at the thought, a thrill shooting down his spine.

It wasn't that he enjoyed news like this, but it made his mind work. It gave him inspiration for his material. He would never right out copy somebody's murder in his books. It would look suspicious, but he would take ideas from them and integrate them into his stories. He smiled to himself, sipping on his juice. He would keep an eye on this case to see what came of it.

Speaking of books, he needed to start writing a new one soon enough. It took a while to get all his thoughts together before writing a new story. He had a meeting later that day as well.

Picking up the phone on the coffee table, he dialed Otogi's number. "Otogi-kun? Yes it's Ryou. Can I come over for a few?"

It didn't take long for Ryou to get to Kaiba's place again. He put on some casual clothes before leaving the house and made sure to lock everything up. He rang the doorbell and waited outside. It was Otogi who came to the door this time, throwing his arms around the white haired man like he did the night before. It was a regular greeting between the two of them. "Thanks for letting me come over on such short notice…"

"Nonsense, you're my best friend, what am I going to do? Turn you away?" he teased, stepping aside to let him in. It was always just the right temperature in that mansion. His heating and cooling bills had to be astounding. When he walked inside, Otogi lead them both to the living room where they sat on a plush, black leather couch. "So, what brings you here today?" he questioned, noting the distant look on his friend's face.

The two had been friends since high school. They had a large circle of friends, but they didn't really pay that much attention to Ryou. He was often forgotten. Half the time it made him wonder if he was really there at all. That's why this new life of his threw him off balance a lot of the time. He wasn't used to so much attention. Positive attention at that.

"I have a meeting today with Marik…" he said. He was in such a hurry to start, that he didn't realize it would come so soon. He was nervous to see him again. Something about the man sent shivers down his spine. He hadn't felt like this since this for a long time. Not since his crush on Otogi back when they first met. But when he realized his friend was head over heal for Seto, he had backed off and allowed him his happiness. After time, the feelings of love had died off, but he still felt a deep connection with his friend. He was the only one he would go to when he needed to talk.

"Aah, I see…" Otogi grinned, laying one of his arms over the back of the couch. "You like him, don't you?" He was teasing Ryou, but the man blushed lightly anyway and averted his gaze. "Careful or you'll get taken advantage of. You're coming on really strong."

Ryou sighed and shook his head, glancing back to the green eyed gossiper. "I'm that obvious, huh? Figures…I feel like a character in my book just waiting to get swept away," he spouted poetically. He wasn't serious. It wasn't like him to be so submissive. Sure, he wasn't exactly the dominant type, but that didn't mean he was a push-over. He would take action where he saw fit.

"So what time are you meeting with tall dark and handsome?" With that, Ryou snorted and covered his mouth with his hand to keep from chuckling. He always found that line to be exceptionally corny. And to hear it come from a man who was usually so elegant with words made him laugh. The other just grinned lazily and flipped a lock of hair out of his face.

"We're meeting at 5 tonight for coffee. It's a business meeting, just to go over the details and make sure it's something that I'm interested in. Only a complete fool would agree to something without knowing the details. So we settled on having a private meeting in a casual setting. It draws less attention that way…" he explained, though the cock in the other's eyebrow led him to believe he was thinking otherwise.

"Sounds like a date if you ask me." The thought made Ryou's heart jump a little and he cleared his throat needlessly. "But it could be strictly for business too. It's not that abnormal after all. I'll be keeping my eyes on you though," he placed two fingers on his eyes then faced them to Ryou in a silly gesture.

"Alright, alright. I don't need a babysitter. But the I'm glad the sentiment is there," he chuckled, helping himself to a chocolate biscuit that was sitting on the coffee table in front of the couch. "So how did the rest of the party go last night?"

Otogi picked up a vanilla biscuit and grinned, "Oh same old story. Nothing really exciting happened. I did hear a bit of news about some crime happening lately. Remember the talk about a gang forming in Domino that had the cops on edge? Well they've got a new leader. He's the one who supposedly was the brains behind the old one before he decided to 'take out the trash' and leave him in a dumpster outside the police office. It didn't make the news because they're worried it will start a panic."

Ryou's eyes widened at that news and he sank back into his seat. "This city just isn't safe anymore. There was a murder this morning on the news. They aren't disclosing much information though." His friend nodded in acknowledgement that he had also seen it.

"Yeah, it's not the first one like it either. He's nicknamed the Fairy Tale murderer. Sounds pleasant right? Well not with some of the things he comes up with. This one is pretty mild in comparison. He's pretty into mythology so he's got a lot of material to work with…" he grimaced slightly just thinking about it.

While it disturbed him a great deal, he couldn't help but think of what was going through this man's head to even think about doing something like that. It intrigued him, and he wanted to do research on this personality. '_I think I just found material for my newest book…'_


End file.
